Guilds
Overview A time-honored system for sharing skills across Onea, the Guild Halls are hallowed buildings scattered across the continent where craftsmen come to hone their skills, and pass on the traditions of Onea’s most revered professions. Historically Guilds transcended clans, with member training and gathering renown before returning to their clans to ply their trade. The Stone Hoove's war ended this practice, with many of the largest, most influential Guilds destroyed in the battles, and with the chaos and changes of post-war unification, the Guilds remained a relic from the past... until Autumn in the year of 1700, when War Lord Hira sent a delegation to retrieve forgotten Guild records and any other priceless notes and artifacts from the past. And then she set to rebuilding the Guilds. Guild Types Shipmaker Guild Hall This hall is the birthplace of the Warlord’s fleet, and home to an ancient, coveted skill; the vessels created here are fierce, reliable, expertly tuned and ornately carved. Situated in the dense coastal woods near the Narrows, the Hall of Onea’s Shipmakers is among the largest. The complex is sprawling but utilitarian, its decoration every bit as bare as its ships are magnificent. A huge semi-circular ridge of rock protects the harbor of ships while they await completion or repair. Weaver Guild Hall In the foothills of Mt. Skeldr, the somewhat cramped hall of Onea’s Weavers sits, surrounded by misty pastures of sheep and apana. Despite its large population and constant productivity, the Weaver Guild hall is often silent as a temple, its members quiet at their looms, heads bent in toil. Though the Weavers produce most of Oneas textiles, from bandages to blankets, the most impressive of their creations are the tapestries produced by the senior members of the Guild. The detail and precision of these works of art is one of Onea’s best kept secrets. ' ' '' Illuminator Guild Hall Perhaps the most peculiar of Onea’s guilds, the Illuminators wear many hats. Acting as historians, illustrators, paper-makers, binders and archivists, the duty of the Illuminator is often poorly understood even throughout Onea. What few records are kept by the War-Forged are written, beautifully illustrated, and made into book form by the Illuminators, who keep their writings in vaults at their secluded hall near the shrines of Mt. Skeldr. Very few people have access to these writings beyond the Illuminators and the Warlord herself, so their grand creations often go completely unseen. ' ' Tanner Guild Hall The least formal and most accessible Guild in Onea belongs to the Tanners. A huge log hall built beside the War Lord’s Road, the Tanners’ Hall hosts a gruff and boisterous population of skilled hunters, trappers and leatherworkers. Producing leather goods, fine furs, soaps and any number of animal-based products, the Tanners often trade with the merchants traveling Onea’s largest highway, and their Hall is a public, inviting place… if you can stand the smell. Midwifery Guild Hall Despite this hall in Skeldr Town being the newest official campus, the Guild of Midwives insists that their craft is perhaps the oldest. The practice of Midwifery in Onea is older than history, but has never carried the same prestige as the knowledge of the Medics; after a long fight against the mostly-male establishment of Guilds, this Hall was finally founded to pass on the female tradition of medicine, and to provide an educational environment devoid of men. Despite the compassion required of their profession, the women of the Midwifery Guild are tough as nails to face the derision tossed their way from the other Guilds. Blacksmithing Guild Hall This guild hall is located about 200 miles southwest of Skeldr Town, hidden in a small valley at the mountain foothills. In the beginning, the alliance with Aodh introduced Incandescent Steel into the arms of the War Forged. However, the precious steel revered by Aodhians proved to ill-fit the Onean environment. Where the steel would be diamond-hard in warmer climates, frigid winters made the Incandescent steel brittle and prone to shattering. Since Aodhians were tight-lipped on its creative methods, and the War Forged were fruitless in trying to replicate it, they resorted to forging their own weapons. What began as a necessity has evolved into a craft all its own. Apprentice smiths begin on smaller items such as horseshoes, farming tools, armor, hardware (nails/hinges/hooks), and other miscellaneous small items. Weapon-making is considered a revered skill, and not everyone has an innate talent for it. The War Forged need to trust their weapons almost as much as their own blood. Therefore, the process to select weapon-makers is competitive amongst journeymen. The Guild is almost exclusively male-dominated; mares in this craft need to prove themselves even more so than their male counterparts, as it’s inherently grueling and taxing work. Category:War Forged